The line graph compares relative price changes for fresh fruits and vegetables, sugars and sweets, and carbonated drinks between 1978 and 2009.
Overall, prices for all categories started at a similar level and rose over the period. Fresh fruits and vegetables showed by far the steepest increase, while the consumer-price index and the other two categories experienced more moderate growth.
In 1978 all four categories were at roughly 60-70 points and followed similar trends in the early years. During the 1980s the price of fresh fruits and vegetables began to climb more sharply than the others and continued to diverge thereafter. By around 1990 the consumer-price index had risen to approximately 125 points, while sugars and sweets and carbonated drinks tracked slightly below it.
From the early 1990s onwards, fresh fruits and vegetables accelerated markedly, reaching well over 300 points by 2009 and thus maintaining a clear lead. The consumer-price index increased steadily to just above 200 points by the end of the period. Sugars and sweets and carbonated drinks rose more moderately, finishing the period at roughly 150-200 points.